Discussion: society & socialisation of migrant labour
18
12, 2019
Movie: Life in Singapore through a migrant worker’s eyes
Next screening: 5 January 2020 at 2pm. Part of proceeds to benefit TWC2
25
11, 2019
Billal with beads of sweat
Billal is thrown into confusion when he hears that his "boss not accept" his injury. He was clearly injured and was taken by an ambulance to a hospital. How can this be not accepted?
24
10, 2019
Push, pull and the runs of choice
Beneath the veneer of workers saying they come to Singapore to get better pay and a chance of a better life, are there other factors that influence the decision to migrate for work? How much volition is there?
20
10, 2019
Just as baby arrives, an eye is lost
Rafiqul's doctor says surgery is needed or the eye would be lost. Employer says no and refuses to pay. Rafiqul feels he needs a lawyer. But says lawyer is doing nothing to resolve the problem. Here's another worker immobilised by system and culture.
25
09, 2019
Remittance highways and byways
Many low-wage workers from Bangladesh continue to use an informal remittance system to send money back home despite it being an unregulated system. Why do they choose that?
12
09, 2019
Education a ticket out of poverty? Not quite
TWC2 volunteer Nicholas meets a construction worker with a university degree. It sets him thinking.
27
05, 2019
More of here, less of there: Increase in repeat workers and fat profits for the underground job broker in Singapore
In this research study, TWC2 found that about 80% of South Asian workers were "repeat workers", a huge change from a few years ago. We also found that about half of them used a Singapore-based job broker to find a job. Typically, these are foreign workers themselves, not licensed employment agents. It's illicit but profitable.
16
02, 2019
Are foreign workers abusing WIC claims?
By Debbie Fordyce The first graph (below) suggests that a disproportionate number of Indian and Bangladeshi migrant workers lodge injury claims within the first six months of starting a job. Moreover, TWC2's observation is that many of these injuries are minor and result in little compensation or will heal completely, thus meriting no disability compensation
29
11, 2018
Does MOM pay work injury lawyers?
By Debbie Fordyce Does the Ministry of Manpower pay lawyers to handle work injury compensation claims? “Lawyers always exciting to take case.” At least some injured workers certainly think that MOM does. They say that they’ve heard that MOM pays lawyers $300 a month to file and manage work injury compensation (WIC) claims. Newly injured
26
11, 2018
Costs of low-waged labour migration: Difficulties, implications and recommendations
Unlike other studies that tend to be more focussed on a particular issue, e.g. recruitment costs or access to healthcare, this study takes a more inclusive approach, to look at the various costs of migration, as surfaced by migrant workers themselves in face-to-face interviews. It therefore reveals issues that may be missed by other studies,